Smartwatch sales are expected to soar next year, as more tech companies launch their respective models.
Research firm Canalys expects smartphone sales to increase by 900% next year compared to estimated shipments for 2013, with over 5 million units to be moved in 2014.
That's certainly an interesting number considering smartwatch sales to date – the company estimates that 330,000 units have been sold in 2012 and 500,000 units are expected to sell this year – and shows there's room for new players in this new mobile-related niche.
The bigger picture is even more interesting, as the company says that over a billion watches were shipped in 2012, implying that there's a lot of room for smarter watches to replace regular ones in the future.
The smartwatch is already seen by the company as the "most important product category in consumer electronics since the iPad defined the market for tablets."
Existing smartwatch makers include Sony, Motorola, Kickstarter-funded Pebble, and other companies, but the game is just getting started. Heavyweight companies like Apple, Google, Microsoft and Samsung are rumored to work on new smartwatch models, which will likely work with existing iOS, Android and Windows Phone smartphones and tablets.
Canalys did not discuss any specific smartwatch model in the report, nor did it reveal any product name for upcoming products, but we're definitely looking forward to see what new models are coming our way.
Sony's most recent smartwatch – the SmartWatch 2 – will hit stores this September. Pebble has already sold over 275,000 smartwatch units.
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